Ezi Umunya protests alleged imposition of caretaker committee

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By Madu Obi

The people of Ezi Umunya village in Oyi local government area of Anambra State have staged a peaceful protest at the council headquarters, Nteje, to express their rejection of the caretaker committee allegedly nominated by the Anambra State Commissioner for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Town Union Matters, Hon. Tonycollins Nwabunwanne.

The protesters said the unilateral nomination without consulting the people of Ezi Umunya or other relevant stakeholders was unacceptable.

Speaking on behalf of the community, Mr. Uchenna Nwankwo said the villagers were aware of an existing court ruling and were not opposed to the government’s decision to set up a caretaker committee, adding, however, that their objection was strictly oi the composition of the committee.

According to him, the individuals allegedly nominated by the Commissioner are parties to an ongoing legal dispute in the community, a development, he added, should disqualify them from serving in such a sensitive position.

“Ezi Umunya has remained peaceful in the last few years under the leadership of Chief Emmanuel Okwundu. The names on the list are the same people who previously caused unrest in the village, fled for about three years, and have now returned to take over leadership and continue from where they stopped,” Nwankwo alleged.

He further stated that Ezi Umunya operates a zoning formula in the selection of its leadership and warned that the Commissioner’s alleged sole decision could undermine the arrangement and trigger fresh crisis in the community.

Nwankwo appealed to the Anambra State government and the Oyi local government council to intervene and rescue the community from what he described as the Commissioner’s high-handedness, warning that insisting on the disputed caretaker committee list could plunge Ezi Umunya into avoidable conflict.